Race, Gender, Higher Education, and Socioeconomic Attainment: Evidence from Baby Boomers at Midlife

Abstract

This article investigates White, Black, and Hispanic men’s and women’s access and midlife labor market returns to college quality. To do so, we use data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-1979 Cohort (NLSY-79), merged with college quality information from the Barron’s Admissions Competitiveness Index. Although prior research has investigated similar dynamics in access and returns to higher education, this work typically excludes Hispanics and does not assess enrollments at community colleges and other less competitive colleges where Black and Hispanic enrollments tend to cluster. We find that Black–White and Hispanic–White differences in college quality, to Whites’ advantage, were fully explained or reversed once we accounted for differences in students’ backgrounds. At midlife, Hispanic and especially Black men had lower rates of labor force participation than White men who attended colleges of the same quality. Including such differences (i.e., years of no or part-time work) in assessing the earnings returns to college quality demonstrated striking disadvantages facing college-educated Black men relative to White men, which were not fully accounted for by background characteristics. Employment and earnings returns to college quality were not as disparate by race for women. Relative to White women, we find earnings advantages for Hispanic women among those who attended community colleges. This article demonstrates the utility of taking an intersectional and life course approach to the study of higher education and the economic returns to schooling.

Higher Education and the Black-White Earnings Gap

“…Comparing the last two models, we see that after accounting for racial differences in pre-college class and academic backgrounds, college quality has little independent explanatory power for the Black-White completion gap. This finding echoes previous studies showing that racial gaps in college quality are fully explained or reversed after differences in class and academic backgrounds are taken into account (e.g., Conwell and Quadlin 2022). In summary, the Black-White gap in bachelor’s completion is primarily a result of racial disparities in resources and skills formed before college entry.…”

“…These disparities are largely driven by race and class differentials in academic preparation. In fact, relative to White students, Black students with comparable class backgrounds and academic qualifications are more likely to attend the nation's most selective colleges and universities, thanks in part to affirmative action policies practiced by those institutions (Grodsky 2007;Ciocca Eller and DiPrete 2018;Conwell and Quadlin 2021). On the other hand, however, it has been found that relative to White students, Black students are also more likely to "undermatch," i.e., to enroll in a college that is less selective than the kind of colleges they would likely have been accepted to given their academic records (e.g., Bowen et al 2009).…”

“…Culling data from several longitudinal studies conducted by the National Center for Educational Statistics, Reardon, Baker, and Klasik (2012:2) report that “the probability of enrolling in a highly selective college is five times greater for White students than for Black students,” and, even after adjusting for family income, “white students are two to three times as likely as black students to gain admission to highly selective colleges.” These disparities are largely driven by race and class differentials in academic preparation. In fact, relative to White students, Black students with comparable class backgrounds and academic qualifications are more likely to attend the nation’s most selective colleges and universities, thanks in part to affirmative action policies practiced by those institutions (Ciocca Eller and DiPrete 2018; Conwell and Quadlin 2022; Grodsky 2007). Other work, however, shows that relative to White students, Black students are also more likely to “undermatch,” that is, to enroll in a college that is less selective than the kind of colleges they would likely have been accepted to given their academic records (e.g., Bowen et al 2009).…”

Assessing the Role of Generational Conflict in the Performance Appraisal Process

“…Notably, Baby Boomers were the first demographic to experience widespread access to higher education, and as a result, many achieved high-profile positions in government, business, and the arts (Conwell & Quadlin, 2022). Moreover, Baby Boomers are renowned for their dedication to social and political causes, such as the civil rights movement, women's rights, and environmentalism, indicating a strong sense of activism and civic engagement.…”

Higher Education and the Black-White Earnings Gap

“…These disparities are largely driven by race and class differentials in academic preparation. In fact, relative to White students, Black students with comparable class backgrounds and academic qualifications are more likely to attend the nation's most selective colleges and universities, thanks in part to affirmative action policies practiced by those institutions (Grodsky 2007;Ciocca Eller and DiPrete 2018;Conwell and Quadlin 2021). On the other hand, however, it has been found that relative to White students, Black students are also more likely to "undermatch," i.e., to enroll in a college that is less selective than the kind of colleges they would likely have been accepted to given their academic records (e.g., Bowen et al 2009).…”